Good times return with traditional community event
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
ST. IGNATIUS — Folks flocked together for a weekend of fun during the Good Old Days events last week. The weekend was named for the nostalgic times when communities gathered to connect and play games for some old fashioned fun. When asked how this weekend compared to past events, one woman leaving a bingo game at the Senior Citizen Center, said the good old days don’t seem that far away anymore.
“This weekend was like we used to be before the pandemic,” she said. “We were able to gather as a community like the good old days of a few years ago.”
Last year, the event was canceled for the first time is about four decades due to concerns about spreading the COVID-19 virus. Festivities returned this year, opening last Thursday with a tennis tournament and continued into Friday with a barbecue and baking contest. On Saturday, the 37th Annual Buffalo Run went through town, and at noon, the parade started.
“I can see it coming over the hill,” announcer Stuart Morton said from a high-rise platform.
He estimated that the event is at least 37 years old and is sure that it was going on before that time.
Morton paid homage to the Mission Valley Honor Guard as they headed up the parade. “They do so many things for this valley, and it’s all volunteer work done by veterans. We are lucky to have them.”
For about 30 minutes, antique tractors and cars followed the parade route. Several floats were filled with graduating classes from years past. The town’s police chief tossed candy from his patrol truck, emergency responders flipped on their sirens, and Smokey Bear waved to the kids. At the end of the parade, the town’s volunteer fire department set up two fire trucks end-to-end and invited the crowd to gather in the space between them. “If you don’t want to get wet, stand back,” one firefighter said over the loud speaker as water hoses were turned on.
“This is the best parade in Lake County and this is how we finish it,” Morton said to the crowd as water filled the street for several minutes.
People stood under the stream, many with their hands up, to cool off in the hot afternoon sun as temperatures loomed in the high 90s. “It was so fun to be under the water,” nine-year-old Weston said. “It felt like rain.”
Weston continued to say that he “just loved the parade” and finished his chores at home so he could get down to Main Street to see the floats, collect candy and get wet.
After the parade, small-town St. Ignatius experienced bumper-to-bumper traffic as people left the parade and moved down to the Good Old Days Park where bouncy toys were waiting, along with the dog races and games.
Before the dog races, Danielle Lynn sat on the lawn giving her two dogs a drink of water in the heat. She said this was the first time that she signed up to do a dog race. “It seemed like something fun to try,” she said.
Hundreds of people filled the park and could be seen talking, waiting in line for games, looking at items for sale under the pavilion or enjoying a cold treat from one of the vendors. The weekend continued into Sunday with helicopter rides at the Good Old Days Fly In.
Morton thanked the crowd for attending and said he hoped the event continues for many more years.
